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Did you know that, besides Dutch, a second official language is spoken in the Netherlands? It’s a language even more closely related to English than Dutch. This language is called Frisian.

Maybe you’re interested in minority languages. Or perhaps you’re keen to learn the language that is considered to be very close to English. Or it could be that you have Frisian roots or plan to visit the beautiful province of Friesland and would like to understand the local language.

This course is aimed at people with no prior knowledge of the Frisian language, who have a strong interest in learning languages. It will give you a taste of language skills that will help you to survive in a Frisian-speaking environment. The main focus will be on receptive skills like reading and listening. It will be taught in English.

4.6Based on
16 reviews

The course "Introduction to Frisian" is a course I would not have missed for the world! Not only is it a course that has never been seen before in the wide, wonderful world of MOOCs, but it has a special appeal for me because during my genealogical research, I found that one of my Dutch ancestors was actually Fries - that is another reason that impelled me to take the course.

The course was a little more difficult than I had anticipated (although I understand that, pre-William the Conqueror, Old Fries and Old English were virtually mutually intelligible.) However, I was able to pi…

The course "Introduction to Frisian" is a course I would not have missed for the world! Not only is it a course that has never been seen before in the wide, wonderful world of MOOCs, but it has a special appeal for me because during my genealogical research, I found that one of my Dutch ancestors was actually Fries - that is another reason that impelled me to take the course.

The course was a little more difficult than I had anticipated (although I understand that, pre-William the Conqueror, Old Fries and Old English were virtually mutually intelligible.) However, I was able to pick out parts of sentences that were still comprehensible to an English speaker, so all-in-all, it was a very enjoyable excursion into a new language.

One suggestion, though; it might help the student if the university provided a more comprehensive vocabulary in the form of a mini-dictionary, and also made available for sale an optional grammar of Basic Frisian. Other than that, I can't think of a more enjoyable three weeks than the past three, in which I learned the rudiments of Frisian, as well as information about that portion of Holland called Friesland. (I plan to continue learning Frisian, bolstering my knowledge by purchasing the aforementioned grammar, and adding a EuroTalk course to hone and perfect my speaking skills; that's how much the "Introduction to Frisian" course has influenced me!)

A great introduction to this weird and beautiful language! Not my first University of Groningen MOOC and I've been impressed by the high quality of their MOOCs each time, so I really recommend it to anyone who's thinking about taking MOOCs from this university.

I loved it! I wish there were a follow-up I could sign up for. But ... I bookmarked all the resources this course has provided me with and this way, hopefully, I'll be able to continue to learn the Frisian language and about Frisian culture and history. I am taken by the historical symbiosis between Frisian and English, something this course has helped me seeing more concretely. For instance, I am looking now at all kinds of English words and wonder what "Frisian" word was replaced by a Latin word. How about the fact that now, thanks to this course, I can track down more easily connections wi…

I loved it! I wish there were a follow-up I could sign up for. But ... I bookmarked all the resources this course has provided me with and this way, hopefully, I'll be able to continue to learn the Frisian language and about Frisian culture and history. I am taken by the historical symbiosis between Frisian and English, something this course has helped me seeing more concretely. For instance, I am looking now at all kinds of English words and wonder what "Frisian" word was replaced by a Latin word. How about the fact that now, thanks to this course, I can track down more easily connections with Platt and other Germanic languages! All of this is FASCINATING for me and all of it has been triggered by simply taking this introductory course! I can now re-read European history quite differently. I am impressed with how comfortable I feel now about the Frisian language, something I couldn't have dreamed of just a few weeks ago. My wife and all my friends can now place Fryslan on the map! I hope we can make it there some day. I rehearse Frisian words and expressions mentally before I fall asleep every night imagining I am actually conversing with someone in Fryslan ... Thank you!

This was an interesting course and very suitable to learn the basics of the language. I found it very useful, because I now better understand Frisian speakers and I also learned to write some easy sentences in Frisian. There was also a lot of background information offered, and possibilities to proceed with other courses, via Afûk for example.

The only less interesting parts were the grammar sections, because the man who explained the topics spoke too slow, and the english translations were for me superfluous because I am dutch. But for non dutch learners it could be essential I suppose.

The grammar was presented clearly and without frills, concentrating on what is 'regular'. We were exposed to speakers with different accents from different backgrounds. The situations covered were those coming up naturally for a beginner starting in a new language.

I checked my knowledge via the placement tests offered on the Afûk website and tested A2. So the course did exactly what it set out to do and a bit more.

Davidcompleted this course, spending 10 hours a week on it and found the course difficulty to be medium.

This course gives an excellent introduction to Frisian. This includes very useful vocabulary focused on everyday situations, but also introduces basic grammar in a clear, approachable way. The dialogues are excellent, feeling very natural and covering all the vocabulary and grammar points, while also stretching the listener. Dankewol Universiteit fan Groningen. Ik sil mear Frysk studjearje, dat hoop ik.

An amazingly paced course. If you are interested in the Frisian language, or really any minority/endangered language with not a lot of learning materials available, this course is just for you. Once you finish it you will feel confident enough to hold basic conversations in Frisian, which means a lot as this language lacks speakers outside of the Netherlands.

Really excellent and personable instructors. As someone who feels nervous about learning a new language, I felt at ease learning in this course. A good pace, and I appreciated the opportunity to listen to many dialogues of native speakers of the language.

This was an excellent introductory course. It was much more than learning a few phrases by rote. It included valuable instruction on grammar and sentence construction; the mechanics of the language, and provided good resources for vocabulary and listening.

Well organized, interesting, and I appreciate how a variety of methods were used to teach the material (videos, transcripts, text, and third party sites like Quizlet and YouTube). I hope to take another course soon!

Easy to navigate through, and not overly challenging. Nice presenters and interesting cultural representation of Friesland, Holland. Three weeks was a comfortable commitment, with just 3 hours per week required.